We saw a lot of negative headlines during spring break this year. Riots, arrests, violence, public drunkenness, traffic disruptions: college kids were busy. So were the police.
It’s tempting to read those news stories and jump to conclusions. But these young people don’t deserve our condemnation, as Christians.
To be sure, we can and should condemn unlawful and violent behavior. But these young men and women are largely doing what they’ve been told is fun.
They’ve had their sense of community, their sense of fun, their sense of connection, even their sense of self defined for them, and those definitions probably didn’t come from the best sources.
They’re not bad, they’re stuck. They don’t need judgment. They need someone to help them lovingly and constructively redefine key parts of their lives.
They also need three specific things: community, adventure, and significance.
A lot of kids get lost seeking these things in the wrong places. They use drugs and alcohol to have adventures. They have communities that give them the wrong sense of meaning, the wrong social incentives. And then they end up in trouble.
But just down the beach from the “typical” experience, we have college students having just as much fun without the negative consequences. We’ve seen this work!
We know that college students flourish when they are placed in healthy environments where they experience a strong sense of belonging, meaningful relationships, and a clear sense of purpose. So we give them that. We give them the space they need to redefine themselves, and to escape potentially harmful cycles from their past.
We plan “silent discos” on the beach. We host roller skating parties and pool tournaments. We also give them the space and structure they need to talk openly and vulnerably about grief, addiction, family hardship, and mental illness.
And they thrive in that environment.
We had one student tell us their spring break experience was the most fun they’d ever had without doing drugs. We had another who told us our spring break experience was the longest they’d gone without drinking or doing drugs. We’ve had other students form deep friendships with students who share an emotional or personal struggle, like a young man from Ohio who had a chance to open up about his brother’s death and came away wanting to dive headfirst into his relationship with Jesus.
This relationship-building isn’t limited to spring break, of course. Every one of us has the ability, and responsibility to make a difference for the next generation.
These kids need caring adults to help them navigate their crazy world, where they’re surrounded by opportunity but also overwhelmed by options, pressure, and comparison.
We can come alongside them by providing relationships that give them the ability to redefine themselves, their communities, their goals, their sense of “fun” and of purpose; and by providing them with relationships that point them to Jesus.
Young people don’t need our judgment. They need our friendship. They need to play, to build friendships, to ask serious questions, and to receive comfort and guidance as they grow.
And, just as importantly, we need them.
